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The Philadelphia Flyers have officially passed the mid-way point of their 2025-26 season. To say that their first season under Rick Tocchet has surprised pundits and fans alike would be an understatement. A tean expected to be close to the bottom of the Eastern Conference instead finds itself in the thick of the playoff race with a 22-12-8 record.
However, there are several obstacles that Philadelphia faces if they hope to hold their position and qualify for their first postseason appearance since the 2019-20 season.
The Powerplay Remains A Problem
Early on, Philadelphia’s man-advantage group had moments where there were glimpses of improvement from past seasons. However several things conspired to bottom out the Flyers’ power-play.
Once opposing penalty killing units began to suss out neutralizing Trevor Zegras, the puck movement began to stagnate. Unsurprisingly Zegras leads the team with six power-play goals. The next leading scorer: Tyson Foerster who was injured on December 1. Not great.
Tocchet’s power-play philosophies, as delivered by assistant coaches Yogi Tvejkovsky and Jay Varady, is predicated on creating chaos and opportunities off of that. However, it’s difficult to do that when they consistently lose faceoffs when they have the man-advantage. They are also far too stationary in their puck movement to get those opportunities.
At other times, the units have been caught on shorthanded opportunities. A perfect example of that being Scott Laughton’s late third period goal on Thursday night.
The other big issue: reliance on Jamie Drysdale to handle the point. As good as he has been working at even strength, Drysdale struggles from indecisiveness in moving the puck or getting an accurate shot on net.
It’s high time that Cam York gets the nod in handling those responsibilities.
Regardless, the Flyers power-play will be one of the main reasons why their season will end. Whether that happens in a critical regular season game down the stretch or in the playoffs, it’s struggles are ominous.
Michkov’s Play Needs To Improve
Matvei Michkov’s sophomore season struggles have been well documented. Following a summer in which he suffered a foot injury that left him unable to train for weeks, his pace has lagged for much of the season so far.
With 40 games under his belt, he remains off his rookie season scoring pace with nine goals and 23 points. He hasn’t score a goal in six weeks. More damning have been his penchant for taking penalties. Michkov leads the team with 38 penalty minutes, most of which are minors. His shifts have been kept shorter than his rookie season.
If there’s any player on the Flyers roster who needs the February Olympic break, it’s Michkov. The Russian needs use the time to improve his on-ice stamina and detail work to help the team in their playoff push.
Physicality and Depth Up Front Needed
One underrated part of losing Foerster for the season, the Flyers are lacking in game changing size, strength, and physicality on their scoring lines. Foerster was the team’s leading goal scorer with 10 at the time of his injury. Combined with his excellent defensive game, he had a near-Mark Stone like effect on the ice.
Despite that, the Flyers have persevered. They’ve gotten good play from Denver Barkey who has played bigger than his 5’10, 171lb frame since his pre-Christmas call-up. However, Philadelphia has had to deal with recent injuries to Travis Konecny and Bobby Brink. If there is a rash of further injuries to their forward group, AHL reinforcements will be needed.
it wouldn’t be surprising to see general manager Daniel Briere searching for some additional help up front. While the center position certainly remains a focus, even after the Dvorak signing, it’s possible that the team could seek a veteran forward with team control beyond this season.
The Flyers will also keep their eyes on Michigan State’s season and their 2025 first round draft pick Porter Martone. Martone recently finished the World Junior Championship, captaining Team Canada to a bronze medal, scoring six goals and nine points. Depending on how far the Spartans get in the postseason, it wouldn’t be surprising if the 6’3, 207lb power winger is signed shortly after it’s conclusion.
Better Back-Up Goaltending Will Boster Chances
Playoff contenders only go as far as their goaltending can take them. And the Flyers have been fortunate as free agent import Daniel Vladar has been outstanding so far this season. Recently named to the Czech Olympic team roster, Vladar sports a 2.35 goals against average and a .910 save percentage in 26 games played.
However, Vladar is approaching his career high in games played in a season, as he has never started more than 30 games in a season. While he will likely eclipse that this season, the Flyers will need reliable back-up goaltending to spell him.
The problem is what they’ve gotten from Samuel Ersson this season hasn’t qualified. While the Swedish goalie has had some good games, he’s been guilty of giving up some backbreaking goals for stretches. His overall body of work (3.09 GAA, .868 S) has been lacking. One of the bigger issues for Ersson has been situations where he’s gotten a clean look at shots that somehow find their way past him.
While it’s far too soon to tap Phantoms goalie Carson Bjarnason for NHL duty, there could be an outside chance that Aleksei Kolosov could earn another opportunity if he continues his solid play of late.
In reality, the Flyers need more from Ersson, especially over the next few months.
